to live, to love, to learn, to leave a legacy… and to laugh along the way
On 2 July 2018, in a match that was part of the 2019 Basketball World Cup Asian qualification process, the Philippines would be involved in a huge brawl against a heftier Australian national team. The game was held at the Philippine Arena in Bulacan, with Australia leading comfortably 89-53 with a minute left in the 3rd quarter, when the free-for-all ensued. Nine Gilas players and 4 Aussies were ejected as a result of the brawl.
The big event that would turn the tide for the PBA would happen outside the squared arena. In September 2009, Typhoon Ondoy devastated Manila and its adjoining provinces. Floods reached a record high and damages were substantial. PBA players were very visible distributing relief goods, providing cheer and hope among the poor victims, many of whom were still temporarily housed in the evacuation centers. For most of the victims, this would be their first time to see these gentle giants in the flesh.
The 90’s finally saw the ‘changing of the guards’, as the PBA’s – and the country’s – top cagers started to bow out one by one to the next generation of stars. As the likes of Bobby Jaworski, Mon Fernandez and Abet Guidaben started huffing and puffing, a fresh group of cage stars were lining up at the officials’ table, ready to take the cudgels for the grizzled vets. Alvin Patrimonio, Allan Caidic, Samboy Lim, Hec Calma, Benjie Paras, Jojo Lastimosa. These were just some of the names that would enthrall the new basketball fandom. Oh yes, as new players paraded in the hardcourt, a new breed of fans would also fill the rafters and crowd the family TV sets.
The arrival of new stars, the birth of new rivalries, the wave of new story-lines and new alliances: these factors were ushering in a new dawn for Philippine Basketball.
In 1975, the Philippine Basketball Association was born, founded by 9 teams that bolted the MICAA in a bold move, leaving the BAP and saying goodbye to their amateur days. The PBA would become the first professional basketball league in Asia, and the second oldest in the world, next only to the NBA.
The storied rivalry between Yco and Ysmael Steel was what mainly stoked the fires of cage fandom in the Philippines in the mid-60s. Long before the well-renowned Crispa- Toyota duel, it was Yco and Ysmael at centerstage.
Color My World 